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TDN

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

So who fancies an early season road trip? If you're not in the central NY area, but just a few hours away as many of us are, you're best bet is the 4th Annual Jan Corcoran Memorial at Canandaigua Motorsports Park. If you've never been there before, this is a great time to see it (dress appropriately), but if you can stand being a little bit chilly, you're in for a real treat. Just remember three things.

1. Try the Salt Potatoes at the concession stand! They're awesome.

2. Single dollar bills are your friend, in fact most concession folks there only deal in them. (don't worry, there's a separate stand to turn your $20 bill into one's)

3. It's worth the drive, EVERY time. The racing the 1/2 mile land of legends produces is some of the best around.

While you're there, take advantage of some bed and breakfasts in the area if you're staying overnight, and be sure to bring back a bottle of a variety of finger lakes wine, the area's Riesling has an outstanding reputation!

The Race:

This is a two day show, however if you miss opening night don't worry, the 64 lap Corcoran Memorial will take place Saturday and promises to be as good as advertised. This was originally arranged to kick off the Super DIRTcar modified tour in 2014, but over the winter it became unsanctioned. No matter, this is the land of legends and the modifieds will still be there.

Big names too, they'll be drawn in by the $6400 to win main event on Saturday night and will draw prominent cars from central, NY as well as the Niagara frontier with a few southern Ontario heavyweights thrown in for good measure. It's a great chance for those who just took the operation out of wintertime mothballs to put the beast on the track and let it rip, and a great opportunity for fans to see Tim McCreadie back in a modified for a night battling Matt Sheppard and a good many SDS tour regulars as well as the local drivers who provide formidable competition. That last statement isn't just blowing smoke either, when the field is paired down for the feature any one of them will have a chance to win and a very realistic one too.

Potential Drivers;

The following list is a general guideline and not a guarantee of an appearance from any driver:

Matt Sheppard

Tim McCreadie

Justin Haers

Peter Britten

Rich Scagliotta

Dale Planck

Billy Decker

Gil Tegg Jr

Jimmy Phelps

Larry Wight

Billy Dunn

Steve Paine

Vince Vitale

Dave Rauscher

Gary Tomkins

Tim Currier

Vic Coffey

Chad Homan

Randy Chrysler

Alan Johnson

Chad Brachmann

Derek Podsiadlo

Rob Bellinger

Tyler Siri

Matt Billings

Alan Johnson

*Danny Johnson is apparently 50/50 dependent on finding a ride according to reports.

*At least 8-10 others. Other events in the area include Fonda (Week 2 Regular show) and the Southern Tier Open at Five Mile Point.

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Previous Winners:

2011: Billy Decker

2012: Danny Johnson

2013: Alan Johnson

Weather:

Raceday Weather's Trever Steele has been tracking Canandaigua for this coming weekend and early reports indicate a brisk, but nice weekend of weather in the finger lakes.

"Weather: The upcoming weekend will see a return to more seasonable weather for mid-April after a snowy and chilly mid-week. Friday will see highs in the low 60s with light southerly winds, mostly sunny skies and dry conditions expected. By the end of the evening, temperatures will fall into the upper 40s under partly cloudy skies.A weak clipper system will then bring the threat of showers late Friday into early Saturday. Precipitation is expected to be on the light side, although the timing of the steadiest rains will arrive ahead of the cold front. This is expected to be for the first half of Saturday with drier conditions arriving into the evening.The remainder of Saturday will see cooler temps with a shift to westerly winds and considerable cloudiness. Temps will fall from highs in the low 50s into the low 40s by the end of the race night. Overall, the weekend will see noticeable improvement from the wintry conditions experienced on Tuesday and Wednesday in the Canandaigua area."

So there you have it! Tickets are just $14 for Friday's action which includes a special event for the Sportsman Modifieds and $20 for Saturday's Jon Corcoran Memorial. It's probably one of the best values of the early 2014 season in the area.

So if you have a wild hair that tells you it's time for a roady, and you love modifieds....make your plans now!